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Third annual Sleeping Angels Fun Run set for April 26

Last year, the Sleeping Angels Fun Run raised $10,000, all of which was donated to Mercy Infant Hospice. This year the goal is to raise $15,000, with all proceeds going to Blank Children’s Shine Program. Submitted photo

Participants in this year’s Sleeping Angels Fun Run will embark on an approximately 120-mile round-trip ride that takes them from Boone to Woodward to Kelley to Zearing and back to Boone again. Joey Droste, founder of the event, hopes 250 motorcycles will participate in the ride. Submitted photo

By Whitney Sager

Editor

What started as a result of a loss has rapidly turned into something to smile about.

Joey Droste, along with a co-worker, started the Sleeping Angels Fun Run and Sleeping Angels Foundation three years ago after Droste and his wife, Shelby, lost their daughter, Maggie Nicole Droste, to a condition called Trisomy 18. She lived three hours after birth before passing away.

Also known as Edwards syndrome, Trisomy 18 is caused by an error in cell division. This condition occurs in about 1 out of every 2,500 pregnancies in the U.S., according to the Trisomy 18 Foundation website.

This year’s Sleeping Angels Fun Run will take place Saturday, April 26. Registration will be from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at Toby K’s Hideaway in Boone, and the motorcycle ride will begin at 11 a.m. Motorcyclists will travel from Boone to the Whistlin Donkey in Woodward, then to Crossroads Tavern in Kelley and Nigels in Zearing before returning to Boone and stopping at Shenanigans.

All riders are expected to be back at Shenanigans by 6 p.m., where a dinner, silent auction and raffle prize drawings will take place. Entertainment will be provided by the Des Moines band, Rumble Seat Riot.

Droste is hoping 250 motorcycles take part in the event this year. Last year’s turn-out was much higher than Droste was expecting, with 210 motorcycles and more than 350 people in attendance.

“I thought it would take a couple years to get 200 bikes,” Droste said. “It was kind of shocking to see them keep coming and coming last year.”

Attendees are mainly from the central Iowa area, though some have come from as far away as Kansas and Minnesota.

The purpose of the fun run is to raise money for infant and children hospice programs in Iowa.

“We want to help as many people as we can,” Droste said.

New this year is a Family Fun Night that will take place the night before the event, Friday, April 25, at Sacred Heart School. Shelby said she wanted to hold the event to give families who have lost children a chance to talk to each other and share their experiences.

“It’s just nice to be around people who have been through what you’ve been through,” Shelby said.

Friday night’s activities include inflatables and games, as well as a booth where people can write a name of a child they have lost on an angel wing sticker. They can either take the sticker home with them that night or it can be put on a motorcycle that will participate in the ride the following day. Either way, Shelby said, the families will get the stickers back.

A light meal will also be served, consisting of hamburgers, hot dogs, chips and drinks.

Community members are not required to register for the Family Fun Night. However, if people could indicate they are going to attend by visiting the Sleeping Angels Fun Run Facebook page, Shelby said this will help get an idea of how much food to have on hand. A freewill donation will be asked of those who attend.

Each year, Droste chooses a different organization to give the money to, with each organization receiving 100 percent of the money raised during the annual event. Funds from the first year were given to the Trisomy 18 Foundation and last year’s proceeds went to Mercy Infant Hospice in Iowa. This year’s funds will go to Blank Children’s Shine Program, which is their infant hospice program.

During the first two years of the fun run, more than $16,000 was raised. The fundraising goal for this year is $15,000.

Both events will be held, rain or shine. Questions about the Sleeping Angels Fun Run or Family Fun Night can be directed to Droste by calling (515) 709-0083 or emailing sleepingangelsfunrun@yahoo.com.

The thing Droste hopes participants will take away from the event is a good feeling knowing their dollars are going to help an infant or child who is sick.

“You don’t realize how tough it is until you go through it,” Droste said.